title: Failure of the fluorescent antibody reaction to identify penicillinase-producing gonococci.
abstract: The fluorescent antibody test is now widely used to confirm the identity of Neisseria gonorrhoeae but may fail to identify penicillinase-producing strains (PPNG). This problem arises when conjugates are used that incorporate only gonococci that are not penicillinase-producers. We have shown that conjugates prepared from mixtures of PPNG and non-penicillinase producing gonococci give good fluorescent reactions. This difference in the reactions of PPNG strains is clearly related to their penicillinase-producing abilities, further study of the antigenic relation between penicillinase production and the antigenic structure of N gonorrhoeae is evidently required.
mesh_terms: D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D006069:Gonorrhea / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D009344:Neisseria gonorrhoeae / Q000201:enzymology / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D010405:Penicillinase / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D013045:Species Specificity; D001618:beta-Lactamases / Q000096:biosynthesis*
chemical_list: D010405:Penicillinase; D001618:beta-Lactamases